Carlo Bennington
| cityofbirth = Warner Bay | countryofbirth = St. Gregory | dateofdeath = | cityofdeath = | countryofdeath = | height = | position = Goalkeeper | currentclub = RivalSport | clubnumber = 99 | youthyears = 2001-2006 | youthclubs = HP Rangers | years = 2006-2008 2008-2018 2018- | clubs = HP Rangers II HP Rangers RivalSport | caps(goals) = | nationalyears = 2011- | nationalteam = St. Gregory | nationalcaps(goals) = | manageryears = | managerclubs = }}Carlo Michael Bennington (born January 14, 1988) is a Gregorian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for League A club RivalSport, and has also played for the St. Gregory national team. Prior to joining RivalSport, Bennington had spent his entire career with Helena Point Rangers, joining the club's youth program at age 15 and spending more than 10 years with the first team. Club career Helena Point Rangers At age 13, Bennington tried out for Calabria, the club he had grown up supporting. However, Calabria declined to offer him a place on their youth team, so his parents took him the short distance north to Helena Point where he tried out for Rangers, who did accept him to their youth program. After spending several years commuting, the Benningtons moved to Helena Point in 2007. Bennington made his first team debut during the 2009-10 League A season in a home match against Cape Wells Wanderers when Rangers' starting goalkeeper Shane Fernquest was sent off for a challenge in the penalty area. Bennington saved the ensuing penalty and preserved a 1-1 draw for his side. Towards the end of the 2013-14 League A season, media outlets in St. Gregory reported that Bennington would be leaving Rangers at the end of the season, with one report by Le Journal de Bonneville linking him with a move to Bonneville United as a possible future replacement for Thomas Leichmann. Bennington denied these rumors and remained on the roster for the following season – he went on to sign a three-year extension to his Rangers contract in December 2014, keeping him at the club through 2018. Bennington was sent off for the first time in his professional career in a 3-1 defeat to Bonneville United on October 31, 2015, when he was ruled to have denied a goalscoring opportunity in bringing down United striker Greg Holloway in the box (Bennington's replacement the following week, Jeremiah Ferguson, surrendered seven goals in a 7-2 defeat at Forest United, resulting in Justin Abbey starting the week after that). Bennington returned to the squad on November 24 after his suspension and helped Rangers to a 1-1 draw against Little Rouge. After a 2-0 defeat to Starrs County on December 31, 2017, that left Rangers bottom of the league, Bennington was reported to have feuded with newly-appointed manager Tal Rubin on the team bus back to Helena Point. Although Bennington started against RivalSport the following week – a 4-1 win for Rangers – the club signed Benjamin Wendell from Eventide and Bennington was dropped from the squad for the team's nationally-televised Monday night clash with Wanderers on January 15. Abbey started the game, with Wendell named on the bench; Rangers lost 1-0 and ended the round still in the relegation zone, five points from safety. RivalSport On January 22, 2018, a week after Bennington had been dropped for the first time in his professional career for a reason other than injury or suspension, he signed with RivalSport – ironically, the team he had beaten in his final Rangers start – on a six-month deal (RivalSport's previous starting goalkeeper, Ben Sinclair, had been sold to MLS champions Toronto FC earlier that same day). The US$650,000 deal for Bennington allowed for an extension at the end of the season and for Rangers to receive an extra US$200,000 if RivalSport survived relegation at the end of the 2017-18 League A season. On April 21, Bennington started for RivalSport in a nationally-televised home game against Rangers, his first appearance against his former club. He made 5 saves to help the Scorpions to a 4-2 victory, a result that secured top flight safety for the team. At the conclusion of the season, Bennington signed a two-year extension with RivalSport. Personal life Bennington was born in Warner Bay to an Italian mother and English father, who had both arrived in St. Gregory while it was still a British territory. His two favorite European clubs are Nottingham Forest and Napoli, the clubs supported by his father and mother, respectively. Category:Player pages Category:RivalSport F.C. players Category:Helena Point Rangers F.C. players Category:St. Gregory national team players Category:People from Warner Bay